Continuous process and apparatus for rolling scrap rail and the like



Oct. 18,1932. G w, C NNO S 1,883,338

CONTINUOUS PROCESS AND APPARATUS FOR ROLLING SCRAP RAIL AND THE LIKE Filed Aug. 15, 1930 4 Sheets-Sheet '1 INVENTOR H gear 4e W onnors N M ATTORNEYS Oct. 18, 1932. G. w. CONNORS CONTINUOUS PROCESS AND APPARATUS FOR ROLLING SCRAP RAIL AND THE LIKE 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 15, 1930 INVENTOR 5:902:46 W fiannors g g 3 :1 1 I I 3 3 j v 3 lll If, m l M m M -H l! I U|-|.l| .rl E M W M Tl L h T L 8 m t Mai {3C (se {Q6 {3 {Qt wit 2 3w N Oct. 18, 1932. a. w. CONNORS 1,883,338

CONTINUOUS PROCESS AND APPARATUS FOR ROLLING SCRAP RAIL AND THE LIKE I Filed Aug. 15, 1930 4 Sheets-Sheet I5 j m m I I I {M J M zzz 22.? J J J INVENTOR 4607 W lannons Q BY J m1 j W 2 ATIORJJEYS Oct. 18, 1932. W, CQNNQRS 1,883,338

CONTINUOUS PROCESS AND APPARATUS FOR ROLLING SCRAP RAIL AND THE LIKE Filed Aug. 15, 1930 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR A 6602* W fionnors ATTO RN EYS Patented Oct. 18, 1932 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE v GEORGE W. GONNORS, F BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA CONTINUOUS PROCESS AND APPARATUS FOR ROLLING SCRAP RAIL AND THE LIKE Application filed August 15, 1930. Serial No. 475,606.

My invention relates to rolling mills of the continuous type, wherein it is contemplated that stock being rolled will pass continuously from one to another of a series of stands of roughing, rough finishing and finishing rolls arranged in alignment and usually spaced so that each will receive the stock from the preceding roll stand in the series until the finishing rolls deliver the rolled stock to an annealing bed or other point of treatment, packaging or storage.

One object of my invention is to adapt such a continuous mill to the rolling of rods, bars, strips, and like merchant stock from scrap rails which, according to existing practice, are passed from the heating furnacethrough a slitter whichsubdivides the rail longitudinally into three separate elements, namely, the flange, the web and the head, which are rolled by hand in separate mills.

I have conceived that scrap rail, or other steel stock of irregular and varying sized cross section may be subdivided by a slitter and rolled in a continuous mill so as to effect great economies in cost of production and a large increase in output, and to this end my invention contemplates arranging the rolls of a continuous mill so as to receive simultaneously two or more differently shaped subdivided stock elements from the slitter and to pass same continuously through the mill, giving to each stock element the requisite number of passes in order to produce from it the contemplated finished product and to produce simultaneously from the One distinctive feature of my invention is that the slitter itself is adapted to form the initial pass in the continuous mill treatment and in receiving the hot rails or stock of different sizes from the heating furnace it can give same the first or initial reduction while subdividing it longitudinally, in the case of scrap rails, into the three elements to be rolled. This makes it possible, by changing the slitter rolls only to receive 4", 5" or 6" scrap rails, to roll such different sized stock sections in the same set of multi-pass rolls and to produce therefrom either like products 0 whole either like, or a variety of, products.

from all three sections of a given rail or a variety of sizes and shapes therefrom and to produce from the diflerent sized rail'stock the sizes that can be most economically derived therefrom in the number of passes available in the mill.

My invention further contemplates that all three elements or any less number thereof into which the rail, as the selected stock, is slit, maybe passed continuously through the rolls of the mill until finished. Where two or more rail elements are being continuously rolled, my invention contemplates simultaneously treating such elements by the same roughing and rough finishing rolls but so arranging and designing the finishing rolls that 1 each finishes only one size at a time of the finished product.

My invention contemplates utilizing the finishing rolls for one size of finished product 0 to rough finish for other sizes of finished product.

Another. important and distinctive feature of my invention lies in the flexibility in con troloffinished productwhich can be obtained by providing the rolls with a number of different sized and/or shaped passes, thus making it possible to divert different sectitmsof the rail from the slitter pass to the" desired pass in the succeeding rolls of the continuous mill, and permitting both the head, web, and flange to be rolled into like or different products.

My invention also contemplates either rollingthe web along with the head and flange of the rail through the continuous mill, or to divert the web to a hand mill and finish it there into any suitable product.

If desired, the head or' flange may be diverted and the remaining section or sections of the rail rolled in the continuous mill.

It is a distinctive feature of my invention that all or any desired number of the sections, into which the scrap rail or stock is subdivided by the slitter, are passed continuously and in parallel selectively through multiple pass rolls of a continuous mill which attains the requisite flexibility of output through the provision of a plurality of if ferent passes in each roll stand suited to the roduction of different cross sections of finished product, and all of this treatment of the rail sections can be accomplished without manual labor except that incidental to 5 general supervision over the operation of the roughing and finishing rolls of the continuous mill.

My invention further contemplates providing the rough finishing and the finishing rolls with idler grooves for permitting the free passage of any rail section or stock not at the time being reduced or formed by that respective roll, thus permitting each section to follow the selected line path from the slitter to the annealing or receiving bed.

My invention further contemplates the combination with the multiple pass roughing rolls, of a lurality of passes in the slitting rolls, there y permitting different sized rails to be slit and rolled Without changing the slitter rolls.

My invention further contemplates the novel details of construction and arrangements of parts, which in their preferred embodiments only are illustrated in the accompanying drawings which form a part of th s specification, and in which r Fig. 1 is a plan view illustrating the initial 0I 11iO11ghiI1g section of a two pass continuous Fig. 2 represents a continuation of Fig. 1, showing the finishing section of the mill and a portion of the bed to receive the finished product.

Fig. 3 illustrates the scrap rail sections as delivered from the slitter and shows the utilization of the slitter to provide an initial forming and reducing pass.

Fig. 4 is a plan view of the mill with one layout of the multiple passes for the rolls which are shown arranged in series without regard to the normal spacing between roll stands and in which each roll is shown driven by an individual motor.

Fig. 5 is a cross-sectlonal view taken on the lineVV of Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a enlarged view of a modified arrangement of the multiple pass rolls showing by the arrows the different distribution of thialrail sections to theelifl'erent passes in the Fig. 7 is a view in continuation of Fig. 6,

showing the finishing rolls, the last finished' roll havng illustrated adjacent thereto the "difierent cross sections of finished stock adapted to be rolled in the different respectively 7 aligning passes of the m ll.

Figs. 8 and 9 illustrate respectively plan and side views of the guides between the slitter and initial roughing rolls.

Similar reference numerals refer to similar parts as shown in the drawings.

In the practice of my continuous rolling mill process, as applied to rolling sections of scrap rail as the selected'stock, these rail sections 10 are, as shown in Fig. 1, brought to the proper heat in a heating furnace 11 and are moved opposite an opening 12 in the furnace through which they are adapted to be pushed by any suitable means, not

. ed from the mill and by hand may be rolled in a separate mill to any form desired. It is to be understood, however, that the web may be rolled in the continuous mill if desired and Fig. 4 shows a mill designed to roll all three rail sections.

A two pass continuous mill is more or less diagrammatically illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2, only one roll of each stand being shown, all stands and drives being omitted as same may be of any standard construction and therefore form no essential part of my present invention. I show four roughing rolls 17, 18, 19 and 20 and the guides for giving the stock the kneading twist between the rolls are also omitted. The passes for the flange reduce it at each roll, but the head 14 is sufliciently roughed by the rolls 18 and 19 and so passes idly through the grooves 21in the rolls 19 and 20. a

Fig. 2 shows the rough finishing rolls 22 and the finishing rolls 23 for the head 14 which is finished as round merchant rods 24 that pass idly through the grooves 21 in the rolls 25 and 26 which respectively rough finish the flange 16 into square bars 27. The roughed bars 27 pass idly through the grooves 21 in the rolls 22 and 23. All the several finished rods and bars or strips are delivered to a suitable receiving bed 28 whichmay be adapted to anneal the same, if such be desired.

It will thus be seen that the rolls 23 finish the rod 24 and do not act on bar 27, and that rolls 26 finish the bar 27 and do not act on the rod 24.

In Fig. 4 I show a complete set of multiple 127 and an individual motor 128 for this stand. p

In Figs. 6 and 7 I show enlarged views of a set of rolls 213, 217, 218, 219, 220, 222,

223, 224 and 225, which are similar to the rolls shown in Fig. 4, except that by these rolls both square and'round stock, as indicated alongside Fig. 7, can be simultaneously rolled, and the arrows from the slitter 213 indicate that the webs are diverted and the heads and flanges can be delivered to the desired pass to roll round and square rods or bars in to 1" sizes. It will be understood that angles or other shapes or sizes may be rolled from the rail.

This gives the mill great flexibility in product and large capacity, as without changing rolls its production can bedistributed over and 1"--square or round stock'and a number of shapes can be continuously and simultaneously rolled. The passes for the difl'erent shapes of stock in the same rolls are carefully and accurately designed toeffect the desired reduction for all rail sections.

The rolls may have an individual or a multiple drive as the conditions at each plant may make desirable and the passes can be varied to handle the raw stock available and to produce any desired finished-or semi-finished stock.

When I refer to slitting the rail, I mean thereby to include any step or steps by which the rail can be sub-divided longitudinally into two or more component sections of different shape and/or size; and, when I refer to rolling the rail sections, such step contem; plates not only completely finishing the stock, ready for the market, but also any partial finishing of the stock, i. e. rough finishing it where it may be desired to finish it in any such way.

The man handlin rail or stock to the shtter and from theslitter the stock sections are directed by suitable guides so as automatically to enter the selected pass in the initial roughing roll stand,

Any type of guide may be used but it should be such as to enable the sections of rails from either pass in the slitter to be crossed over and delivered to'any desired pass in the mill. Thus, as shown in Fig. 6, shouldtit be desired to roll 1" round-or square s ock from difierent sized scrap rail, the head sections from the two slitter passes can be delivered to the adjacent passes at one end of the rolls or. the flange or web from the slitter passes can be delivered to the passes for the round or square stock as may be desired.

'In Figs. 8 and 9 I show the slitter roll with only a single pass and the guides comprise the fixed'slitter delivery guides 226 and 227 for the head and flange, the web being, die verted by a guide not shown. The initial roughing. rolls having the fixedreceiving guides 229 and .230 'for the head and flange tinuously rolling rods, bars, strips the furnace feeds the only skilled supervision.

Though I have described with great particularity the details of the embodiment of the invention herein shown, it is not to be construed that I am limited thereto, as changes in arrangement and substitution of equivalents may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the invention as defined in the appended claims.

WhatI claim is 1. The herein described process for conand/or shapes from stock irregular in cross section,

which consists in dividing the stock longitudinally into component sections different in cross section, and simultaneously rolling different'shaped sections in a continuous mill.

2. The herein described process for continuously rolling rods, bars, strips and/or respectively and interposedbetween the said i shapes from stock irregular in cross section,

which consists in slitting the stock into comonent sections each different from the other 1n cross section, and simultaneously rolling difl'erent sections in a continuous mill of multipass rolls.

3. The herein described process for continuously rolling rods, bars, strips and/or shapes from stock irregular in cross section, which consists in slitting the stock into com- .ponent sections substantially diflerent in cross section, guiding sections selectively tothe desired pass of a multipass continuous rolling mill, and simultaneously rolling said sections into a variety of finished products.

4. The herein described process fon continuously rolling rods, bars, strips and/or shapes from scrap rail and similar raw stock, which consists in slitting the stock, in the first pass, and rolling the stogk sections simultaneously in a continuous rolling mill having multipass rolls designed to convert same continuously into the desired finished stock.

5. The herein described process foncontinuously rolling rods, bars, strips and/or shapes from scrap rail and similar raw stock, which consists in slitting the stock, in the first pass, delivering the stock sections simultaneously to a continuous rolling mill having multipass rolls designed to convert same continuously into the desired finished stock. and finishing stock of diflerent sizes on different rolls oftinuous rolling mill, and rolling said sections therein simultaneously to produce a variety of different sized and/or shaped finished products.

7. The herein described process for continuously rolling scrap rail stock, which consists in slitting and reducing the rail in the first pass and delivering the rail sections selectively to the desired passes of a multipass continuous rolling mill, simultaneously rolling said sections in said mill, and finishing sections of difierent size independently.

8. A continuous rolling mill comprising a rail slitter, a sequence of multipass rolls, and

means to deliver a plurality of the slit rail sections selectively into the desired passes of said mill. I i

9. A continuous rolling mill comprising a rail slitter, multipass rolls, means to deliver 0 a plurality of the slit rail sections selectively into the desired passes of said mill, and blank passes on the finishing rolls of said mills adapted to finish only one size of stock on one finishing roll.

10. In combination," a multipass slitter adapted to subdivide diiierent sized stock of irregular cross section into component parts difierent in cross section, guides to direct component parts selectively to the desired 6 pass of a continuous rolling mechanism, and

continuous rolling mechanism adapted to simultaneously roll said component parts into a variety of finished products of different size and/or shape.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

l GEORGE GONNORS. 

